Barney
Barney & Friends is an American live action television series, created by Sheryl Leach and produced by HIT Entertainment. It premiered on PBS, PBS Kids, Nickelodeon, Nick Jr. and Disney Channel on April 6, 1992. The series features the title character Barney, a purple anthropomorphic Tyrannosaurus rex who conveys educational messages through songs and small dance routines with a friendly, optimistic attitude. Production of new episodes ceased on September 18, 2009. Reruns aired on Sprout from 2005 until 2015, and aired under Sprout's new name, Universal Kids from December 17, 2018-present. Origin and development Barney was created in 1987 by Sheryl Leach of Dallas, Texas. She came up with the idea after noticing that her son outgrew Wee Sing Together, and then recognizing that there were no videos to appeal to her son. Leach then brought together a team who created a series of home videos, Barney and the Backyard Gang, which also starred actress Sandy Duncan in the first three videos. One day in 1991, the daughter of Connecticut Public Television executive Larry Rifkin rented one of the videos and was "mesmerized" by it. Rifkin thought the concept could be developed for PBS. Rifkin thought Barney had appeal because he was not as neurotic as Big Bird. He pitched it to CPTV president Jerry Franklin, whose preschool son also fell in love with it. Franklin and Rifkin pitched the idea to all of their colleagues with preschoolers, and they all agreed that kids would love a Barney show. Franklin and Rifkin convinced Leach to let CPTV revamp the concept for television. The show debuted as Barney & Friends in 1992. The series was produced by CPTV and Lyrick Studios (later bought by HIT Entertainment). Although the show was a runaway hit, PBS initially opted not to provide funding beyond the initial 30-episode run. When CPTV executives learned this, they wrote letters to their fellow PBS member stations urging them to get PBS to reconsider. The Lyons Group, meanwhile, sent out notices through the Barney Fan Club, telling parents to write letters and make phone calls to their local PBS stations to show their support for Barney & Friends. By the time of the yearly member stations' meeting, station executives across the country were up in arms over the prospect of one of their most popular shows being cancelled. Faced with an atmosphere that Rifkin later described as "like an insurrection", PBS ultimately relented. For several years, the show was taped at the Color Dynamics Studios facility at Greenville Avenue & Bethany Drive in Allen, Texas, after which it moved to The Studios at Las Colinas in Irving, Texas, and then Carrollton, a suburb of Dallas. The TV series and videos are currently distributed by HIT Entertainment and Universal Studios, while the TV series was produced by WNET from 2006 to 2010. Episodes First Era (April 6, 1992 to May 12, 1995) Season 1 (April 6, 1992 to May 15, 1992) #The Queen of Make Believe (April 6, 1992) #My Family's Just Right for Me (April 7, 1992) #Playing It Safe (April 8, 1992) #Hop to It! (April 9, 1992) #Eat, Drink and Be Healthy! (April 10, 1992) #Four Seasons Day (April 13, 1992) #The Treasure of Rainbow Beard (April 14, 1992) #Going Places! (April 15, 1992) #Caring Means Sharing (April 16, 1992) #Down on Barney's Farm (April 17, 1992) #What's That Shadow? (April 20, 1992) #Happy Birthday, Barney! (April 21, 1992) #Alphabet Soup! (April 22, 1992) #Our Earth, Our Home (April 23, 1992) #Let's Help Mother Goose! (April 24, 1992) #Be a Friend (April 27, 1992) #I Just Love Bugs (April 28, 1992) #When I Grow Up... (April 29, 1992) #1-2-3-4-5 Senses! (April 30, 1992) #Practice Makes Music (May 1, 1992) #Hi, Neighbor! (May 4, 1992) #A Camping We Will Go! (May 5, 1992) #A Splash Party, Please (May 6, 1992) #Carnival of Numbers (May 7, 1992) #A World of Music (May 8, 1992) #Doctor Barney is Here! (May 11, 1992) #Oh, What a Day! (May 12, 1992) #Home Sweet Homes (May 13, 1992) #Hola, Mexico! (May 14, 1992) #Everyone is Special (May 15, 1992) Season 2 (September 27, 1993 to October 20, 1993) #Falling for Autumn! (September 27, 1993) #Grandparents are Grand! (September 28, 1993) #May I Help You? (September 29, 1993) #Red, Blue and Circles Too! (September 30, 1993) #Honk! Honk! A Goose on the Loose! (October 1, 1993) #Hoo's in the Forest? (October 4, 1993) #I Can Do That! (October 5, 1993) #Grown-Ups for a Day! (October 6, 1993) #Picture This! (October 7, 1993) #Look at Me, I'm 3! (October 8, 1993) #The Exercise Circus! (October 11, 1993) #My Favorite Things (October 12, 1993) #The Dentist Makes Me Smile (October 13, 1993) #Stop, Look and Be Safe! (October 14, 1993) #An Adventure in Make-Believe (October 15, 1993) #The Alphabet Zoo (October 18, 1993) #Having Tens of Fun! (October 19, 1993) #A Very Special Delivery! (October 20, 1993) Season 3 (February 27, 1995 to May 12, 1995) #Shawn and the Beanstalk (February 27, 1995) #If the Shoe Fits... (February 28, 1995) #Room for Everyone (March 1, 1995) #I Can Be a Firefighter! (March 2, 1995) #Shopping for a Surprise! (March 3, 1995) #Anyway You Slice It (April 10, 1995) #Twice Is Nice! (April 11, 1995) #On the Move (April 12, 1995) #A Welcome Home (April 13, 1995) #Classical Cleanup (April 14, 1995) #Our Furry Feathered Fishy Friends (May 1, 1995) #Gone Fishing! (May 2, 1995) #At Home with Animals (May 3, 1995) #It's Raining, It's Pouring... (May 4, 1995) #Camera Safari (May 5, 1995) #Who's Who on the Choo Choo? (May 8, 1995) #Are We There Yet? (May 9, 1995) #Ship, Ahoy! (May 10, 1995) #Hats Off to BJ! (May 11, 1995) #Up We Go! (May 12, 1995) Second Era (November 3, 1997 to April 14, 2000) Season 4 (November 3-28, 1997) # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # Season 5 (November 2-27, 1998) # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # Season 6 (November 1, 1999 to April 14, 2000) # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # Third Era (September 2, 2002 to May 13, 2005) Season 7 (September 2, 2002 to November 22, 2002) # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # Season 8 (September 15, 2003 to May 14, 2004) # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # Season 9 (September 6, 2004 to May 13, 2005) # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # Fourth Era (September 18, 2006 to September 18, 2009) Season 10 (September 18, 2006 to October 13, 2006) # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # Season 11 (September 17, 2007 to October 12, 2007) # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # # Season 12 (September 15-26, 2008) # # # # # # # # # # Season 13 (September 7-18, 2009) # # # # # # # # # # Sound Effects Used *Alphabetically